Alan Bennett Directed by Nicholas Hytner ★★★★ Pros: A funny and enjoyable watch, plus a brilliant performance from Frances de la Tour and a great set. Cons: To its core audience, this might be provocative humour, but to me it felt quite conventional. Our Verdict: An enjoyable night out. Definitely worth seeing, but it didn’t change my life. Courtesy of Alastair Muir for The Telegraph Unlike a lot of the people in the audience of People, I am not a Bennett expert ...

Simon StephensDirected by Marianne Elliott★★★★ Pros: A brilliantly acted performance of a gritty, interesting and rather excellent script, complete with a refreshingly optimistic ending. Cons: Very few. It dragged a tiny bit in the middle, but this is a show which very narrowly missed out on the fifth star! Our Verdict: A tip-top show from the National, and one of my favourite Lyttelton productions to date. No excuses to miss it – there are plenty of £12 tickets available! Courtesy ...

Written and Directed by Suzanne AndradePresented by 1927★★★★ Pros: Finest use of projection I have ever seen and great ensemble work. Cons: Some adult viewers might be fooled into thinking this is a kids’ show. Our Verdict: This is brilliant stuff from a very talented company.﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿ Courtesy of The National Theatre If 1927‘s The Animals and Children Took to the Streets sounds familiar, it is probably because you have come across it before. Indeed it is returning from its recent international tour ...

Howard BarkerDirected by Tom Cairns★★★ Pros: Some interesting concepts in the scripts and good performances on stage. Cons: Sometimes a bit slow, and tries to say a lot of things at once. Our Verdict: Enjoyable with the usual high production values, but not groundbreaking. Courtesy of the National Theatre One thing you don’t expect to see when you pay a visit to the National Theatre is a catastrophic set malfunction. In a way, we were lucky to witness such a ...

George Bernard ShawDirected by Nadia Fall ★★★ Pros: An old play with very current issues; interesting to watch. Cons: The characters lack refinement and are a little disappointing, and it didn’t make me feel anything in particular. Our Verdict: It’s a good show overall, but it’s not quite up to the National’s usual standards. Courtesy of Alastair Muir for the Daily Telegraph The Doctor’s Dilemma was written in response to the theatre critic William Archer’s claims that George Bernard Shaw wouldn’t ...

Stephen BeresfordDirected by Howard Davies★★★ Pros: A cast that makes you go ‘wow’, a stunning set, and some wonderful individual performances. Cons: Some conversations didn’t seem quite real, despite it being a naturalistic production. Our Verdict: This play will do very well with the cast it has but there’s something not quite there. Yet. Courtesy of the National Theatre The first play written by actor-turned-playwright Stephen Beresford, The Last of the Haussmans follows an ailing hippy (Julie Walters) and her ...

Written and Directed by Enda Walsh★★★★ Pros: Powerful acting supports a complex, beautiful and well-constructed story in a intricately devised setting. Cons: Desperately sad. Our Verdict: An unsettling experience but an incredible night of theatre. Courtesy of the Daily Telegraph There aren’t many shows in life that can genuinely make you feel something deep beneath your skin. Misterman achieves that, if for no other reason than bestowing you with the sincere desire to take a shower. The production is probably the ...

Conceived and directed by Lloyd NewsonCo-Production between the National Theatre and DV8 Theatre★★ Pros: DV8’s stylised physical theatre. Cons: The political agenda is uncomfortable. Our Verdict: DV8 is a brilliant physical theatre troupe, it’s a shame about the topic they’ve picked to perform which only detracts from what they do best. Courtesy of Gergoe Nagy for the Guardian Through verbatim speeches and stylised movement, DV8 are back on stage at the National Theatre, tackling the potentially flammable issue of Islam’s ...